RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 The Critical Role of Sleep Spindles in Hippocampal-Dependent Memory: A Pharmacology Study
JF The Journal of Neuroscience
JO J. Neurosci.
FD Society for Neuroscience
SP 4494
OP 4504
DO 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.3127-12.2013
VO 33
IS 10
A1 Sara C. Mednick
A1 Elizabeth A. McDevitt
A1 James K. Walsh
A1 Erin Wamsley
A1 Martin Paulus
A1 Jennifer C. Kanady
A1 Sean P. A. Drummond
YR 2013
UL http://www.jneurosci.org/content/33/10/4494.abstract
AB An important function of sleep is the consolidation of memories, and features of sleep, such as rapid eye movement (REM) or sleep spindles, have been shown to correlate with improvements in discrete memory domains. Because of the methodological difficulties in modulating sleep, however, a causal link between specific sleep features and human memory consolidation is lacking. Here, we experimentally manipulated specific sleep features during a daytime nap via direct pharmacological intervention. Using zolpidem (Ambien), a short-acting GABAA agonist hypnotic, we show increased sleep spindle density and decreased REM sleep compared with placebo and sodium oxybate (Xyrem). Naps with increased spindles produced significantly better verbal memory and significantly worse perceptual learning but did not affect motor learning. The experimental spindles were similar to control spindles in amplitude and frequency, suggesting that the experimental intervention enhanced normal sleep processes. Furthermore, using statistical methods, we demonstrate for the first time a critical role of spindles in human hippocampal memory performance. The gains in memory consolidation exceed sleep-alone or control conditions and demonstrate the potential for targeted, exceptional memory enhancement in healthy adults with pharmacologically modified sleep.